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VEDÂNTA-SOTRAS.
Self which has its abode within all creatures' (X, 20). The term 'creature' in these passages denotes the entire aggregate of body, &c., up to the Self.-Because he is the Self of all, the text expressly denies that among all the things constituting his body there is any one separate from him,' There is not anything which is without me' (X, 39). The place where this text occurs is the winding up of a glorification of the Divine one, and the text has to be understood accordingly. The passage immediately following is 'Whatever being there is, powerful, beautiful, or glorious, even that know thou to have sprung from a portion of my glory; pervading this entire Universe by a portion of mine I do abide' (X, 41 ; 42).
All this clearly proves that the authoritative books do not teach the doctrine of one non-differenced substance ; that they do not teach that the universe of things is false; and that they do not deny the essential distinction of intelligent beings, non-intelligent things, and the Lord.
The theory of Nescience cannot be proved. We now proceed to the consideration of Nescience.According to the view of our opponent, this entire world, with all its endless distinctions of Ruler, creatures ruled, and so on, is, owing to a certain defect, fictitiously superimposed upon the non-differenced, self-luminous Reality; and what constitutes that defect is beginningless Nescience, which invests the Reality, gives rise to manifold illusions, and cannot be defined either as being or non-being. Such Nescience, he says, must necessarily be admitted, firstly on the ground of scriptural texts, such as 'Hidden by what is untrue' (Kh. Up. VIII, 3, 2), and secondly because otherwise the oneness of the individual souls with Brahmanwhich is taught by texts such as 'Thou are that '-cannot be established. This Nescience is neither being,' because in that case it could not be the object of erroneous cognition (bhrama) and sublation (bådha); nor is it non-being,' because in that case it could not be the object of apprehension and sublation 1. Hence orthodox Philosophers declare
1 Nescience' is sublated (refuted) by the cognition of Brahman,
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| SR No. | 007680 |
| Book Title | Satapatha Bramhana Part 05 |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | Julius Eggeling |
| Publisher | Oxford |
| Publication Year | 1900 |
| Total Pages | 2017 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Book_English |
| File Size | 44 MB |